retrogression
noun
ret·ro·gres·sion
ˌre-trə-ˈgre-shən 
2
: return to a former and less complex level of development or organization
Examples of retrogression in a Sentence
social instability that has led to a retrogression of moral values and standards of decent behavior
Recent Examples on the Web
Visa retrogression might become more of an issue for Indian and Chinese applicants who invest under the high-unemployment category due to its more limited availability.
—
Sam Silverman, Forbes, 7 Mar. 2025
Does the Senate really want to put in office a secretary with zero medical training, who believes in raw milk and not in the extraordinary benefits of vaccinations, without asking him about such retrogression?
—Arthur House, Hartford Courant, 22 Nov. 2024
In another 5-to-4 decision, Justice O’Connor wrote an opinion that would significantly alter the initial retrogression standard established in Beer v. United States.
—Nick Corasaniti, New York Times, 21 Nov. 2023
Progressives de nos jours seem inordinately attached to retrogression.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 8 June 2021
What explains the wide perception of racial retrogression at a time when surveys show that racial attitudes and behaviors have never been better?
—Jason L. Riley, WSJ, 27 Apr. 2021
For Fantom, his card showed nines of 40 and 39 for his 79, but his win wasn’t official until through retrogression, his score on the eighth handicap hole, was a stroke better better than that of Patterson Mill’s Brandon Palen, who also shot 79.
—Randy McRoberts, baltimoresun.com, 24 Oct. 2020
This duplicity is, as the museum called it, part of the American paradox: a museum that represents both stagnancy and change, advancement and retrogression, black America and the rest.
—Maya Phillips, The New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2019
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Sam Silverman, Forbes, 7 Mar. 2025
Does the Senate really want to put in office a secretary with zero medical training, who believes in raw milk and not in the extraordinary benefits of vaccinations, without asking him about such retrogression?
—Arthur House, Hartford Courant, 22 Nov. 2024
In another 5-to-4 decision, Justice O’Connor wrote an opinion that would significantly alter the initial retrogression standard established in Beer v. United States.
—Nick Corasaniti, New York Times, 21 Nov. 2023
Progressives de nos jours seem inordinately attached to retrogression.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 8 June 2021
What explains the wide perception of racial retrogression at a time when surveys show that racial attitudes and behaviors have never been better?
—Jason L. Riley, WSJ, 27 Apr. 2021
For Fantom, his card showed nines of 40 and 39 for his 79, but his win wasn’t official until through retrogression, his score on the eighth handicap hole, was a stroke better better than that of Patterson Mill’s Brandon Palen, who also shot 79.
—Randy McRoberts, baltimoresun.com, 24 Oct. 2020
This duplicity is, as the museum called it, part of the American paradox: a museum that represents both stagnancy and change, advancement and retrogression, black America and the rest.
—Maya Phillips, The New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Retrogression.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/retrogression. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
retrogression
noun
ret·ro·gres·sion
ˌre-trə-ˈgresh-ən
: a reversal in development or condition: as
a
: return to a former and less complex level of development or organization
b
: subsidence or decline of symptoms or manifestations of a disease
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